Red Sox brass finally makes a promise they can’t possibly go back on

With how lackluster the Boston Red Sox’ “full throttle” offseason was last winter, the first under Craig Breslow, it would be hard for fans not to approach this offseason with caution. Despite the Red Sox meeting with Juan Soto, connection with the likes of Roki Sasaki, Blake Snell, Max Fried, Garrett Crochet and many others, and consistent buzz that the team would spend, what evidence has there been since the Mookie Betts trade ? Would that actually be the case?

Now Red Sox fans have a reason to believe in that — and hopefully not a reason to be righteously outraged come March.

On Wednesday evening, Mike Silverman of the Boston sphere spoke with Red Sox President and CEO Sam Kennedy about the team’s offseason plans. And after not openly talking about the plan for how aggressive the organization would be this winter, despite having already met Soto once, he spoke clearly and aggressively about the plan:

“Even if it puts us above the CBT (Competitive Balance Tax). Our priority is 90 to 95 wins, winning the American League East and winning the division for several years.”

That’s as obvious as it gets, but Kennedy wasn’t done there yet.

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One of the main reasons for fans’ caution in believing Boston’s brass was taking the pursuit of Soto seriously or even spending big money this offseason is because the franchise already has Rafael Devers under a long-term, $313 million contract. But Kennedy didn’t shy away from the possibility of signing Soto to a longer, more expensive deal expected to be worth a total of more than $600 million. When asked if the Red Sox were willing to add another contract of that size, he was once again candid.

“Is that possible? If necessary, yes, absolutely. We are investing more than last year. We plan to invest in the future.

“There is an extreme urgency internally to compete for the American League East Championship and to position ourselves without questions for a deep postseason run in 2025. The goal is to win 90+ games so you don’t have to worry about a wildcard spot.”

In addition to Soto, who Kennedy said he couldn’t reveal details about, the Red Sox president also specifically noted that the team will pursue “for the rotation guys and bullpen” arms, two of the most obvious needs of the club. That also confirms what we’ve already heard with the connections to Sasaki, Crochet, Snell, Fried and more.

In addition, Kennedy said the impression from his early discussions was that Boston was an attractive destination with the young core the organization has or is coming up with three Top 25 prospects on the cusp of their Major League debut.

Make no mistake, all this talk is just that until names are on dotted lines for the Red Sox. However, hearing this message coming from the top of the organization has been something unknown in the past five years. This is not a vague promise of good things; it is a direct promise that big steps are coming.

If they don’t, the anger will be more intense than in previous years, as it should be. However, at this point and after hearing Kennedy’s comments, it’s becoming increasingly difficult not to believe in what the Red Sox have to offer.